Page 26 of Tango

Ty kept me locked in place, then once everyone had moved on, he pulled me down the hallway and into my office.

“Are you all right?” I asked after he closed the door and took my hand again. “Did something come up with Hill?”

“I’m struggling,” he admitted, “with this Paul guy. I don’t want to be, but I am.”

“Okay.” I kept my mouth closed.

“My head’s all,” he waved his free hand around, “twisted up.”

“Okay.”

“Apparently, he died, but lived, and became some undercover informant working for the damn enemy.”

“Wow, okay.” I felt like I was in a damn novel.

“Okay?” He looked at me strangely.

“I’m treading carefully here, Ty. I’m merely listening.”

“What does that mean?”

“I know how you get if I become too supportive. You’ll say I’m being Dr. Knight, so I’m just listening to what you have to say instead.”

“How I get?” His face pulled back in defense.

“Are you looking for a fight?” I pulled my hand from his and rested it on my hips. “If you need that, fine. Just let me know because I’m still digesting the last bit of news you shared with me.” Yup, I was still processing the news he was leaving me for Taliban country.

“Fuck!” He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “I’m sorry.” I could see he was. “I don’t deal well with things that bother me like this. Okay,” he breathed through his nose, “I’m going to try to do this right. Why am I so twisted up inside that one of their fallen has suddenly returned?”

“Do you want me, or my doctor take on this?” I wanted to be clear on how to answer him.

“Give me your doctor take.” I saw his mask slip. This was hard for him, but I wasn’t going to hold back because that wasn’t who I was.

“From what you’ve just told me, and your past, I’d say you don’t trust him. You still view him as the enemy.”

“Yeah, that’s exactly it.” He nodded quickly. “I look at him and see a snake in the grass. How do we know he hasn’t flipped? He fooled the Cartel for ten fucking years. How do we know he wasn’t sent here to do the same?”

“Well, that’s something you’ll have to figure out on your own.”

“That’s your advice?” he griped.

“Yes, it is. I can’t change your mind. I haven’t experienced what you have. What I would suggest is to tread very carefully. To everyone else, he’s someone special.” I hurried for the door, as I wanted to hear the story from Paul himself. “Remember, very few have walked through that door, so the fact that he’s here means he’s been deeply examined by top-notch psychologists. If he got cleared, then his head must be screwed on straight.” He looked away, as he knew I was right.

“Ivy,” he called as I opened the door, “for now, can you just keep your distance from him?”

“No.” Because I knew I wouldn’t. I held up a hand to stop his protest. “But I will keep my guard up. I promise. Come on. Let’s go down and hear what he has to say. It’s important to me to be in on all this firsthand.”

As we settled on one of the open couches, Paul returned with Frank and Cole. I reached for Ty’s hand and tried my best to ground him. Paul sat on the brick at the base of the fireplace and let out a long breath. Everyone impatiently waited to hear his story.

“If I may?” Mia spoke first, to my surprise. “I wanted to ask you to start at the hospital.”

“Sure.” Paul brushed his thumb over his lips as Mia continued.

“I saw you die for a second time on that table, Paul. It’s something I’ve carried with me for years. I also remember Frank came in with some others, and I was asked to leave and go share the terrible news of your death with the others.” She shot her father a nasty look.

“It was—”

“No,” she cut Frank off, “I’ll deal with you later. Right now I want to hear it from Paul.” Frank cleared his throat, and I thought he might lash out at her, but instead he just swallowed back her comment and stayed quiet. Smart man.

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